Commonly asked questions at Art Shows

You have a machine right, you don't honestly make these by hand do you?
This is one of the most often asked comments/questions at art shows. Sorry to disappoint you, but I do make them all by hand.

Some pieces like the Organic Series take hours to days to complete with all that fine detailed wrapping. The piece to the left also has handmade wire prongs setting faceted stones, though I do not do faceted stones as custom work as it is to easy to accidentally chip one.

Do you use solder or glue? No I don't, that is part of the challenge. In general the technique I use is called wire wrapping. Then there are sub-catagories such as binding, coiling, sculpting and weaving. All with the use of wire. These are also a part of the process of cold-connections.

What metals do you use? I have a preference for working first in Sterling Silver, second in 14ktgf, and occasionally in copper or aluminum. I do occasionally use plated pin-backs, as it reduces the cost to the customer and is not an integral part of the overall piece of art jewelry I make.

What about the earring findings? are they plated? The pierced variety such as studs and French hooks are not plated. I do use plated clip-ons when asked. I can provide sterling or 14ktgf clip-ons but those increase the cost by $18-$25 currently.

You mentioned 14 karat gold-filled, what is it? Roughly it is a core of jewelers brass that has an outer tube of 14 karat gold pressure bonded to it. I use 14/20 gold filled wire, which means that 14k gold is used and must be 1/20th the total weight of wire. This is not the typical plated wire that you can buy from the craft store that rubs off within a month. General consensus is that jewelry made from 14ktgf wire is considered a lifetime piece when taken care of just like you would care for your 14kt gold jewelry. Gold-filled wire is also tied to the gold market, when gold is up, so is the cost of the wire. Ultimately, 14kt gold-filled wire allows more people to find unique and spectacular jewelry at an affordable price.

Do you do custom work? Yes, I do. I tend to get more requests for the straightforward border wrap style depicted at left. Just e-mail me with your idea and size of project and metal type and I will get back to you with either more detail questions or an estimate and we can go from there.

Do you teach classes? Not currently and quite honestly I don't have any plans in the near future for it either.

Birthstone Chart
This chart is what I use in making the angels. Personally I wear whatever color I want.

Oh, and Silver represents the Moon, while 14ktgf represents the Sun.